Shloka 18
Duryodhana’s Account of Gandharva Defeat and the Pandavas’ Intervention (दुर्योधनवर्णितो गन्धर्वसंग्रामः)
न पापकं ध्यास्यति धर्मपुत्रो धनंजयश्चाप्यनुवर्त्स्यते तम् । अरण्यवासेन विवर्धते तु भीमस्य कोपोडग्निरिवानिलेन,“धर्मपुत्र युधिष्ठिर मेरे अपराधपर ध्यान नहीं देंगे। अर्जुन भी उन्हींका अनुसरण करेंगे। परंतु इस वनवाससे भीमसेनका क्रोध तो उसी प्रकार बढ़ रहा होगा, जैसे हवा लगनेसे आग धधक उठती है
na pāpakaṁ dhyāsyati dharmaputro dhanaṁjayaś cāpy anuvartsyate tam | araṇyavāsena vivardhate tu bhīmasya kopo ’gnir ivānilenā ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Dharmaputra Yudhiṣṭhira tidak akan memendam kesalahan; dan Dhanañjaya Arjuna juga akan menurut jejaknya. Namun, kerana pembuangan ke rimba ini, amarah Bhīma terus membesar—seperti api yang marak apabila dikipas angin.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ethical steadiness and leadership: Yudhiṣṭhira’s dharmic temperament refuses to dwell on wrongdoing, and Arjuna aligns himself with that disciplined course; in contrast, unresolved injustice and hardship can inflame anger, as seen in Bhīma—warning that suffering without inner restraint may intensify wrath.
The narrator Vaiśampāyana characterizes the brothers’ differing inner responses during forest exile: Yudhiṣṭhira remains composed and non-ruminative, Arjuna supports and follows him, while Bhīma’s anger grows ever stronger, compared to fire fed by wind.